Syllabus
British Cultural Studies (Sept-Dec 2018)
The course will cover: 1. (a) A general introduction to the course.
(b) The Geography of the British Isles and national character 2. The political system, political parties, the Royal family 3. History (i): The origins of Britain to the year 1066, the sea, food and cooking. 4. History (ii): The Normans and 1066 to Tudors (Henry VIII, Elizabeth I) - aristocracy, the church, diet, the sea explorers and expansion; its relevance today. 5. History (iii) The Civil War – Parliament, the role of Ireland and Scotland, the social classes and political parties. 6. Industrial Revolution, Empire, and its effects on today’s world. 7. Scotland and the United Kingdom 8. Era of Reform, Victorian/Edwardian era – the end of Empire, to WW1, workers and women’s rights. 9. WW2, social, political and economic change, to now. 10. Northern Ireland – incl. history. 11. Wales.
Annotation
This course provides a general introduction to British society and culture. The syllabus includes a general focus on the history, the regional variations of British society, as well as a consideration of important aspects of cultural life such as government, education, attitudes towards class and accent, multiculturalism, etc., looking at both the origins of these and how they appear today.
It will provide a wider context for using the English language, in both speaking and writing.